On Thursday 28 July 2022, willing team members at VASS UK took part in the annual Dragon Boat race at Paddington Basin, in fancy dress to reach the finish line and take home the trophy!
The team boarded the boat for two 100m races down the basin, dressed as pirates and came seventh place out of nineteen businesses in and around the area including; Premier League, 5 Merchant Square, ZenDesk, GoBoat, Stash and more!
We are on a mission to raise £1500 for our local children of St Mary’s Intensive Care (COSMIC) charity. This event alone helped us reach over 50% of the target, and the team have more initiatives including bake sales, lunch and learns and partner VTO events planned to support fundraising efforts by the end of 2022.
Thank you to our charity partner COSMIC for putting on a fantastic event, and to our customers, partners and friends of VASS that donated, there is still time to donate!
About COSMIC
COSMIC was established in 1994 to provide better care for critically ill children. The charity supports children and babies in intensive care at St Mary’s and Queen Charlotte’s Hospitals in London. Learn more about COSMIC and give your support.
Since its inception, COSMIC has:
- Purchased over £2,000,000 of life-saving equipment, which the NHS is unable to fund
- Spent over £500,000 on ground-breaking research into paediatric health.
- Raised £1.5 million to create COSMIC House – onsite accommodation for families with children in intensive care.
- Funded incubators for babies in intensive care.
- Provided hundreds of hours of counselling for families and frontline staff.
The Dragon Boat Games began at 17:00 and there was lots for colleagues, friends and spectators to enjoy.
History of the race..
The Dragon Boat Race has taken place in the Paddington Basin for over 10 years. This 2000 yearold tradition sees teams of ten rowers and one drummer race down the length of Merchant Square canal, to the beat of the drum, in a bid to reach the finish line and take home the trophy. Fancy dress is always encouraged, with previous teams dressed as Vikings, Drag Queens and Pirates. Crews are made up of people from the local area – work colleagues – families and friends all coming together to raise money for the local children of St Mary’s Intensive Care (COSMIC) charity.
At VASS we encourage our employees to support charitable actions and allocate 1% of their working hours to different volunteer programs.
The team boarded the boat for two 100m races down the basin, dressed as pirates and came seventh place out of nineteen businesses in and around the area including; Premier League, 5 Merchant Square, ZenDesk, GoBoat, Stash and more!